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Sir Michael said producers made an ending to the movie but cut it, leaving cinema-goers in the lurch with the famous cliffhanger finale and Charlie Croker's line: "Hang on a minute lads. I've got a great idea."
Speaking at the 2008 Visit London Awards, the 75-year-old said the British gang of criminals did escape, but the gold tumbled into the ravine and was collected by their rival Mafia gang.
The Telegraph quotes him as saying: "In the coach, I crawl up, switch on the engine and stay there for four hours until all the petrol runs out.
"The van bounces back up so we can all get out, but then the gold goes over."
More than 750 different entries have been submitted to a Royal Society Of Chemistry competition to find the 'most original and elegant' ending to the film.
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